Prior to the procedure , they observed , her intestinal flora was almost non existant . “The usual bacteria just couldn’t be found in her,” said Dr. Khoruts. “She was inhabited by all kinds of misfits.” Two weeks after the transplant , the donated flora had taken charge . “That population was able to function and cured her disease faster than anyone anticipated” .

To say that the scientific community was surprised with the outcome is something of an understatement.  It shouldn’t be. Scientists are frequently amazed by the complexity , power , and sheer number of bacteria that live in our systems . We have more than ten times more microbes than cells.

We all have populations made up of various species, but they generally fulfill the same necessary chemistry that we need to be healthy . One of those functions is breaking down complex plant molecules.  We have a pitifully small number of enzymes encoded in the human genome, so we need additional bacteria . In addition to supporting the digestive function , the bacteria helps us in a variety of other ways. The microbes in our nose , for example, make antibiotics that fight off the dangerous pathogens we inhale .

In order to work in harmony  with our microbiome own bacteria population , our immune system must tolerate myriad of harmless bacteria , while attacking pathogens . Researchers are seeing that the microbiome itself guides the immune system to the proper balance.  One way the immune system fights pathogens is with inflammation. Too much inflammation can be damaging , so we also have immune cells that produce inflammation-reducing signals. With their ability to contain unrestrained free radicals, antioxidant populations also support an inflammation fighting function.

Scientists are finding new links between our inner flora and our health. They’re also finding that many conditions are accompanied by big changes in the makeup of our inner ecosystems. For example asthmatics have a different collection of microbes in their lungs than healthy people. Obese people also have a different set of species in their digestive tracts than people with normal weight.

 Some surveys indicate that babies delivered by C- section are more likely to get skin infections since they possibly lack the protective covering of microbes from their mother’s birth canal. Caesarean sections have also been linked to a rise in allergies and asthma in children . So have the high use of antibiotics in the United States and other developed countries. Children who live on farms — can get a healthy dose of microbes from the earth — are less less likely to get autoimmune disorders than their peers who are raised in cities.

We consistently underestimate the importance of microbes and bacteria to our health and our medical profession has been too quick to take out their pads of paper and write up prescriptions for antibiotics and synthetic drugs.  Digestive Enzyme supplements , probiotics and natural support for our immune systems  might be a more thoughtful route to take in the future if we want to change this trend.

We’ve all seen what oxidation does to a piece of metal . . corrosion and rust!  Our bodies are under the same kind of stress.  Even though oxygen is essential for life, it can generate damaging by-products during normal cellular metabolism.  These by-products are called free radicals. 

The oxidation process is necessary, but it leaves behind free radicals, oxidized molecules that are short of electrons.  These molecules are unstable and agitated.  They stay unstable and short of electrons until they seize new electrons to replace the missing ones.  They prowl throughout our bodies taking electrons from our cells, even our most vital ones like electron-rich DNA.

When free radicals steal electrons away from our DNA it no longer functions properly.  DNA stores our genetic information and controls the reproduction of all new cells, including the cells of our organs, heart, brain and other tissues which are vital to our health.

Left uncontrolled, free radicals may cause in excess of 50 health problems including mutation of new cells; damage to vision; faster aging of skin, organs, and bones; damage to heart and blood vessels; damage to the nervous system and brain cells; enzyme malfunction; cancer; and a weak immune system.

Various things ramp up our metabolic activity and consequently increase our body’s manufacturing of free radicals:

• Strenuous physical activity
• Mental stress, depression, and repeated anxiety
• Toxic industrial chemicals in our water, air, food, and beverages

We have in our blood streams 300 – 500 toxins, the majority of which didn’t exist prior to World War II.  This is regardless of what section of the country we live in.  One researcher tested people around America and found that 100% of the persons tested had 100% of the toxins tested for.

Our drinking water has been contaminated by chemical fertilizer runoff, medicines flushed down our toilets, and pollution from manufacturing facilities.

Perhaps the primary way to protect ourselves from free radical damage is eating foods high in antioxidants.  Antioxidants easily give away their electrons to “hungry” electron deficient free radicals.  The way that antioxidants work is that they either bind to the free radicals and convert them into harmless compounds or by repairing cellular damage.

Antioxidants found in what we eat include vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, and the carotenoids.  Our bodies can also produce antioxidants.  However, the antioxidant content of our modern diet has been severely decreased due to soil depletion, “green harvesting”, and today’s farming techniques.  Any antioxidant nutrients in fruits and vegetables that survive our modern-day growth and harvesting methods then suffer due to the cooking, processing, preserving, and packaging common today.

Thus to make sure that our bodies get enough antioxidants it is necessary that we eat foods high in antioxidants and to take a reliable antioxidant supplement in our daily diet.  This pdf document, A comparative list of antioxidants, shows the free radical protection provided by each of 91 different antioxidant products based on their ORACo value.  ORAC is an acronym for Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity.  The original ORAC assay was a measurement for only water-soluble antioxidant activity.  ORACo assays both fat and water-soluble antioxidant activity.